On March 1, 2017, Beverly Davenport became the eighth chancellor of the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. Now 14 months later, she has been placed on administrative leave and will no longer serve as chancellor as of July 1. Dr. Davenport will remain at the university as a professor in the College of Communication and Information.
University of Tennessee System President, Joe DiPietro said in a statement, “Dr. Davenport and I have had several conversations during her tenure as chancellor to lay out expectations, and discuss concerns. Unfortunately, issues arose that have progressed and, while I am disappointed to have to make this change, it is necessary and in the best interests of the University.”
In a letter to Chancellor Davenport that was released to the press, DiPietro wrote “the relationship between us, as well as that between you (and some members of your cabinet) and some on my leadership team continues to be unsatisfactory. More times than I find acceptable, there has been a lack of trust, collaboration, communication, and transparency in these relationships, and it has been counterproductive to the collective success of the university.”
In the letter DiPietro continued: “You have not acclimated yourself to the UT system and still appear unwilling to try to understand or acknowledge the value of the UT system. I have had multiple people on multiple occasions complain that you do not listen to the person talking to you or pay attention to the details of written communications you receive.”
Before being named chancellor of the University of Tennessee-Knoxville, Dr. Davenport had been serving as the interim president of the University of Cincinnati. In July 2013, she was appointed senior vice president for academic affairs and provost at the University of Cincinnati. Earlier in her career, Dr. Davenport was vice provost for faculty affairs at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana, dean of social sciences at the University of Kansas and chair of the department of communication at the University of Kentucky.
A native of Bowling Green, Kentucky, Dr. Davenport holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Western Kentucky University. She earned a Ph.D. in communication from the University of Michigan.